UCL: London's global university

First English university to admit students of all beliefs and ethnicities

210 clubs and societies with 18,000 memberships sold

49% of the student body volunteer on external community projects (2011-12)

Students from 150 countries and 100 staff nationalities

20% of students study abroad as part of their degree

21 modern languages taught at UCL

Central London location

UCL Global Citizenship

UCL is a world-class, research-led, multi-faculty university, consciously and deliberately global and wide-ranging in its reach and ambition. We strive for excellence and are committed to making a difference in the world; our aim is to provide an educational environment that reflects these values and supports our students to develop in the round.

The philosophy of global citizenship within the curriculum is epitomised in the UCL Global Citizenship Programme, a two-week programme open to all undergraduates.

Education for global
citizenship

Citizenship describes our
responsibilities towards our community and those around us; global citizenship
extends that responsibility in the context of a shrinking and ever more closely
connected world.

UCL believes the education we provide must take into account –
and promote – the increasing importance of global citizenship and educate our
students not just as experts in their disciplinary fields, but students who are
global citizens, those who:

look beyond
their individual and local interests and see the complexity of an
interconnected world

understand
the nature of the challenges that face that world

are
aware of their social, ethical and political responsibilities

are
ready to display leadership and work together to change the world for the
better

are
able to solve problems through innovation and entrepreneurship

prosper
in a global jobs market that values the skills UCL provides

This is what we mean by
education for global citizenship: studying at UCL equips our graduates to face
the complex problems of the modern world.
These are the principles that
inform all
that we do at UCL – from our commitment to student volunteering, the way we conduct ourselves as
an organisation to the way we work with other institutions.

A longer introduction to global citizenship and some of the paradoxes and problems it raises as a concept is available in this lecture by our Academic Director, Dr Tim Beasley-Murray